A Dangerous Secret
by Bella2be
Summary: Everybody wonders who Cat Noir is. Even Marinette, who knows perhaps better than anybody that it has to be kept secret, can't help but think about it almost daily. However, when she finds out who the boy behind the mask really is, the shock is almost too much for her, and her whole world spirals out of control. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1: Cheese

**Hey guys, this is my first ever fanfic! I would really appreciate any suggestions, tips, criticisms, etc. Obligatory _Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir _is not owned by me. A warning: I'm not the best at writing stories, and I _suck_ at writing introductions and conclusions. This first chapter is basically just to help me ease into the story so I can get on with the plot. Anyways, I hope you enjoy!**

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Marinette flopped down on her bed as she detransformed. She had just saved Paris from another supervillain, and had barely made it back to her room before her Ladybug disguise disappeared in a flash of pink magic.

"Tikki," Marinette groaned as the kwami spiraled out of her earrings, "Why does that silly cat have to make so many puns? I'm seriously considering taping a piece of duct tape over his mouth."

Tikki giggled. "He really enjoys it, almost as much as his kwami enjoys eating stinky cheese."

"His kwami likes eating stinky _cheese? _I'm glad you like macaroons, and not whatever Cat Noir feeds his kwami."

Tikki giggled again before becoming serious. "It's getting late, and you must be tired. It's time you get some sleep."

"I think you're right, Tikki. Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Marinette."

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**Please leave a review! I really need any form of help, which includes criticism! **


	2. Chapter 2: Swans

**Hey, guys! Thank you mckellepstephen, diamantecintilante, ****Nieka2000, The shadows only want to play, ****Clone wars lover, emjrabbitwolf, mirami03, ****AshlyKagome15, and ****affienona for favoriting and following! RockSunner, thank you for your review, and Guest, I really appreciate the tip! Hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

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"Incoming! Adrien at 2 o'clock!"

"Ahhhhh! Alya, I'm not prepared!"Marinette attempted to hide behind the red-haired girl, but Alya pulled her back into view as Nino and Adrien walked up to them, smiling.

"Hey, Marinette. Hey, Alya."

"H-hi, Adrien. You're cute. I-I mean, aren't puppies cute?"

Alya stifled a laugh. "Speaking of animals, let's go to the zoo this week! I really want to see the new swans! Won't it be interesting?"

Marinette looked horrified.

Nino grinned, taking the hint. "Sure, Alya, swans sound great! I hear they're really romantic!"

From behind Adrien, Marinette shook her head vigorously, gesturing to Alya that it was a bad idea, _especially_ if Adrien was coming.

"The zoo sounds great! I would love to go there! Are you coming, Marinette?" Adrien asked, his green eyes sparkling.

"I, uh-"

"She's totally coming." Alya said, placing her hands on Marinette's shoulders.

"Great! What day and what time?" Adrien asked.

"Wednesday at 4:30 sound good?" Alya asked, grinning.

Nino nodded, and Adrien said, "Perfect!"

Marinette was screaming internally. Yes, she wanted to spend time with Adrien, but she couldn't form a complete sentence with him around, and if she could, it was completely ridiculous statement that made no sense whatsoever.

This was a train wreck just waiting to happen.

• • •

"Those panthers are so majestic!" Alya exclaimed. It was Wednesday, 4:45 pm, and they were gazing at the different animals displayed throughout the zoo. Alya pulled out her phone and gasped. "Oh no, looks like I have to babysit. Sorry, guys, but bye!"

Of course, it was all fake. Alya didn't really have to babysit her twin sisters. It was a cover-up, designed to leave Marinette alone with Adrien.

Nino grinned, recognizing the signal to leave. Changing his smile to a fake frown, he too pulled out his phone and sighed. "Ugh, dudes, my mom wants me to come home because….you know, stuff."

Adrien nodded, being _extremely_ oblivious. "Maybe another time we can all hang out together. Anyways, bye!"

"At least you and Adrien have each other, Marinette!" Alya called over her shoulder, running to hide the smirk she had on her face. Operation Adrienette was finally happening!

Nino ran to catch up to his girlfriend, laughing.

Adrien smiled and waved, while Marinette wanted to scream. How could her friends do this to her!? Her hair probably looked horrible, her clothes were too plain…

"I, uh restroom need to go! I mean, go to need restroom! I-ugh. I need to go to the restroom! Be right back!"

"Ok." Adrien smiled at her, and her heart just about melted. His lemon-colored hair glinted in the sunlight, his smile seemed to invite her to take his hand, and god, those sparkling green eyes of his were gorgeous….

"Are you okay? You're just staring at me."

"Oh, I, uh, gotta get to the restroom!" Shaking herself out of her daze, she mentally facepalmed and ran to the restroom, thinking,_ Welp, I'm a wreck._

After making sure all the stalls were closed, she ducked into one herself as Tikki flew out of her bag.

"Ahh! Tikki, I was talking about the _restroom_ to him! And then I just started staring at him, and now I'm here! What am I going to do!?"

"Calm down, Marinette. Everything will be fine." Tikki assured her. "Just be yourself, and he'll finally see how amazing you are!"

"Thanks, Tikki. You always know what to say." They hugged, and Marinette walked out of the stall, taking deep breaths. "Okay. I can do this. I can do this." She walked out of the restroom and spotted Adrien looking at the gorillas. Rushing back into the restroom, she cried, "I can't do this! _I can't do this!"_

"Marinette, it will all be okay. Try thinking of him as a friend."

"Ok. I can do this."

• • •

Marinette stepped out of the restroom, muttering, "I can do this. I can do this." One foot, then another. Slowly, she inched herself forward until she was next to Adrien. "H-hi."

He smiled down at her. "Hey. Don't these swans look beautiful?"

"Not as much as you," Marinette sighed, gazing at him.

"What was that?"

"I, uh- They sure do look pretty!" She amended. Really, they were. The graceful animals were purely white, other than an area of black around their beaks. The necks of the swans curved gently, resembling half of a heart. In fact, Marinette spotted two swans forming a full heart with their necks.

They admired the birds, sitting in silence, but not in an awkward way. It was a gentle silence, allowing more words to be said than if either of them had spoken.

For a moment, Marinette could almost forget she was spending this quiet time with her crush. It just felt natural, right, that she could be around Adrien without stuttering and making a complete fool of herself.

After a few minutes, Adrien glanced at his watch and sighed. "I'm sorry, but it's getting late, and my father wants me to be home for dinner. Do you want me to give you a ride home?"

"N-no, I'm fine, thank you, though." Marinette responded.

Adrien smiled at her, and she was lost in his eyes for a few moments again.

They walked to the exit together, where Adrien's bodyguard was waiting with his car to take him home.

"Bye." He waved at her and she waved back, smiling. After the car drove away, she walked home with a satisfied smile on her face.

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**Just to clarify, I've only seen a few episodes of season 3, so I probably won't write any spoilers without further notice. This whole story will probably just take place after season 2, but before season 3. **

**Please review! I need criticisms so that this fanfic doesn't end up in disaster. Give me your wholehearted, completely honest opinion! **


	3. Chapter 3: Teasing

**Hello**** everybody! **

**Thank you Jane the fan, PitZahad, and kazza2182 for following. Thank you Jane the fan and Guest for reviewing. Both reviews really made my day!**

**This is a short chapter, sorry. I kinda got a bit of writer's block at the end. **

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Adrien entered his room, sighing with content. His kwami, Plagg, flew out of his shirt as the door closed.

"You seem to have really enjoyed the quality time you just had with Marinette."

"Of course! She's a very good friend." Adrien answered.

Plagg chuckled. "I didn't mean it that way, kid."

"Then what _do _you mean? Adrien asked, confused.

"I'm saying that you liked spending time with Marinette _alone." _

"Plagg, Marinette's just a _friend. _And you know my heart only belongs to Ladybug."

The black cat kwami pretended to vomit at the last statement. "All this lovey-dovey talk is making me hungry!"

Adrien sighed. "Plagg, you're _always _hungry."

"CHEEEEEEEESE!"

Adrien handed him a slice of Camembert.

Plagg threw it up into the air, catching it inside his mouth and swallowing it in one big gulp. Adrien rolled his eyes, used to the habits of the cheese-loving kwami.

"Some things never change."

• • •

"Girl! You _have_ to tell me what happened at the zoo earlier! Did you guys hold hands!? Did you kiss!? You have to tell me everything!"

"Not much happened, Alya. I was just my usual, stuttering, blabbering mess. I had to go to the bathroom to calm down, and then, well..."

"And then what, girl!?" Marinette could hear the excitement in her friend's voice, even over the phone.

"After I got out, we just talked about how the swans were beautiful, and it just felt nice. Like I could actually talk to him without being all awkward around him."

"Really? You _weren't_ all stuttering and babbling and practically drooling all over him!?"

"Yeah, exactly! It was wonderful! After that, he had to go home, though. But it was amazing at the end."

"So, when are you declaring your romantic, undying love for him?" Alya teased.

_"Alya! _You know I could never do that."

"Well, one day you're gonna have to."

Marinette sighed. "I will. One day."

"I'll make a plan."

"Wait, a plan? What do you mean?"

"A plan to get you to confess your love for him."

"Alya, are you sure about that? I'll just make a fool of myself like always."

"Trust me, girl."

She was about to answer when her mother opened the trapdoor and called, "Marinette! Dinner!"

"Sorry Alya, I gotta go," Marinette said apologetically. "See you tomorrow at school." She ended the call.

Setting down her phone, Marinette stood up and walked down the stairs to join her parents for dinner. "Can you set the plates?" Her dad asked. She nodded and set the table for three.

• • •

After dinner, Marinette was sketching designs. Suddenly, her phone buzzed with a notification from the Ladyblog. Tikki flew to her side to see what the latest update was.

"There's a new supervillain named Queen Ghost! Ladybug and Cat Noir aren't even here yet!" Alya's voice said. The screen showed a light grey-skinned girl with purple eyes standing on the ground. Her loose black hair with its single stripe of white fell down to her waist. She had lace up purple boots, black leggings, and a dark purple short-sleeved dress with a black trim.

The girl on the screened laughed. "Rise, my ghosts, and serve me!" She waved a black wand with white vines circling it, causing dark purple flashes of light to ripple out. White whips rose from the ground, forming people who were not completely solid. The ghosts flew through people, causing even more fear among the citizens of Paris.

"I have to help them!" Marinette gasped. Tikki nodded in agreement.

"Tikki, spots on!"

• • •

"Paris is being attacked by this new supervillain, Queen Ghost. She's raising the dead and turning citizens into zombies. Ladybug and Cat Noir have not shown up yet, but the police are doing their best to contain the situation."

Adrien stared at the TV screen in shock. "Raising the dead!? I do _not _look forward to fighting her."

"Can I finish my cheese first?" Plagg, who had been hovering nearby, asked.

"Fine. Just hurry."

Plagg finished his slice of cheese in one gulp. "Y'know, Cat Noir doesn't _always_ have to fight. He can take breaks. I'm sure Ladybug will be fine on her own."

"Or she might need help. Plagg, claws out!"

Plagg groaned as he was sucked into the ring.

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**For those of you wondering about Queen Ghost's akumatization, I'll write about it in another story. After I'm done with this one. I have a few more ideas (other than how she got akumatized) for this character, but I want to explore them once I'm done with this fanfic. **

**Also, I planned to update every Thursday, but then again, the impulse to write just comes and goes, so I can't really guarantee anything. **

**Phew. Just wanted to get both those things put of the way. Anyways, thanks for reading! **


	4. Chapter 4: Queen Ghost

**I am SO sorry for this late update! At times, I am _really_ forgetful, and it didn't help that yesterday was Independence Day. Hopefully, it will never happen again.**

** Thank you Spottedlittlebug and DSegno92 for following! Thank you Hesturoth for favoriting! Thank you stargirldnc2001 and for following _and_ favoriting! And thank you, Bella2be, for reviewing! I didn't even know I could review my own story! **

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"Hey, mommy, there's a weird creepy lady floating in the sky."

"Mmm, how nice dear. Now let mommy finish talking with her friend."

"She looks really scary."

"I'm sorry dear, but mommy is having a conversation on the phone. Please just wait a little."

"But mommy, she's pointing her stick at us!"

"Huh?"

In a flash of purple light, both mother and daughter were turned into zombies with green flesh and glowing purple eyes. Their hair and clothes remained the same, but the civilians no longer had control over their bodies. The people around them screamed while the two new zombies spoke in one voice: "All hail Queen Ghost!"

Queen Ghost cackled. "Soon, all of Paris will be zombies and the dead will live again!" She continued to blast purple beams of light at civilians, turning them into zombies. More and more ghosts rose from the ground, bowing to the akumatized villain.

The purple butterfly outline appeared over her face. _"Queen Ghost, don't forget our agreement. Your parents will come back, but you have to honor your end of the deal. Bring me Ladybug and Cat Noir's miraculous." _

"Of course, Hawk Moth." The butterfly outline faded from her face.

Queen Ghost laughed as she shot another beam of light at a group of civilians, turning them all into zombies. "All hail Queen Ghost." They bowed down to her.

"All zombies and ghosts, form an army! I need warriors to serve me!" She waved her wand, and suddenly both zombies and ghosts were equipped with weapons. They began to form ranks, standing protectively around her. She shot a white beam of light at the ground, opening a crack. Dozens of ghosts armed with swords rose from the ground, shrieking with delight.

Queen Ghost giggled. "This is _so _much fun!"

Then a yo-yo wrapped around her ankle, pulling her downward and slamming her into the ground. As Queen Ghost struggled to get up, the yo-yo retracted back into the hand of Ladybug, who was standing on top of a nearby building.

Cat Noir landed next to her. "Hello, m'lady. Looks like we have a _paw_blem."

Ladybug groaned. "Really, Cat Noir? We have a _situation!" _She waved her hands at the ghosts, zombies, and their queen.

As if on cue, Queen Ghost rose in front of them, wand in hand. "Ladybug! Cat Noir! Give me your miraculous, and I will spare you _and _your loved ones."

"How about we just defeat you?" Ladybug said. Queen Ghost growled and shot a purple beam at her, but she dodged. She began to swing her yo-yo in front of her, creating a shield. Queen Ghost continued to shoot at her, but the beams dissipated as soon as they hit the shield.

"Ignoring the cat, are we?" Cat Noir asked, leaning on his baton. Queen Ghost turned and fired at him, but he sidestepped, smiling. He began to spin his baton, creating a shield just like Ladybug had. Queen Ghost scowled, knowing what would happen if she tried shooting at him.

Ladybug took the chance to tackle her. They rolled around, with Queen Ghost finally gaining the upper hand after a few seconds of fighting. "Haha! You can't defeat me, Lady-brat!" She yelled, but Ladybug pulled her down, and the fighting continued.

• • •

Meanwhile, Cat Noir was fighting off a few zombies who had climbed up the side of the building. They were surprisingly not slow for zombies. Cat Noir wished they _were _slow, like in the movies and comic books. They weren't exactly fast, but it was hard to fight them, especially since he wasn't sure if the bruises he caused would stay when they were turned back into civilians. _The __miraculous ladybugs will fix it, _he decided.

After a few minutes of fighting, Cat Noir managed to kick the last one off the building. It hit the ground with a heavy thud, making him wince. He hoped the damage wasn't pernament.

He glanced back at the fight between Ladybug and Queen Ghost. One would rise above the other, but each victory was short-lived. He decided to join the fight. Ladybug sprang up, and Cat Noir used the opportunity to pin Queen Ghost to the ground with his baton. During the fray, her wand had rolled away **(Author's Note: Hey, that rhymes!), **so she couldn't reach it. Ladybug scooped it up and was about to break it when Queen Ghost kicked Cat Noir, causing him to yelp and drop his baton to rub his knee, where she'd kicked him. Queen Ghost sprang up, using the moment to snatch her wand from a surprised Ladybug's hands.

Queen Ghost looked down at the street and smiled. "Excellent!" Ladybug followed her gaze atnd gasped. Alya was surrounded by zombies. She mentally facepalmed. _Of course. _The Ladyblog was the reason she had been alerted to Queen Ghost's existence. Alya had filmed the villian turning people into zombies. She, as always, had been recording a bit too close to the action and now she was one person in a sea of zombies. It was a miracle she hadn't been turned into one, but Ladybug scolded herself for not making sure Alya, or anyone else for that matter, was far away and safe from the battle. She glanced at Cat Noir and could almost see similar thoughts running through his mind.

"Your our beloved blogger will no more if you don't hand over your miraculous at 6:00, sharp. Meet me at the Eiffel Tower!" Queen Ghost cackled and flew down to help her zombies capture Alya. One of them had somehow gotten a rope from who knows where and used it to bind Alya. Hoisting her on top of their shoulders, the zombies looked at Queen Ghost for guidance on what to do next.

The akumatized villain smirked. "See you at the Eiffel Tower, Ladybug and Cat Noir." She cackled one last time as she waved her wand, causing all the zombies and ghosts to disappear along with her and Alya.

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**Yeah, I'm not the best at writing fights. It's going to be worse next chapter, when I'll write the rest of the fight. Or maybe I won't. Honestly, I'm just doing this as I go along. I don't really have anything planned, other than the identity reveal and (hopefully) more puns. I'm not sure about the pun thing because 1) I'm bad at making puns and 2) my weak attempts at humor just fall through the roof. **

**Anyway, thanks for reading. If you can, please review and/or participate in the poll that is currently on my profile!**


	5. Chapter 5: Kidnapping Because Why Not

**Thank you LuffyLover27, Madyson Helms, and Dknight27 for following! Thank you ****bluedeltadreamkitty for favoriting! **

**Sorry if Alya seems out of character. It's kinda hard for me to write her. Actually, now that I think about it, I'm pretty terrible when writing _everyone. _Except Queen Ghost. She's mine, and I love writing her.**

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Ladybug paced the roof of a building located near the Eiffel Tower. "Plan... I need to come up with a plan.." she muttered over and over again. About every 10 seconds, she would look up to the famous landmark, see Queen Ghost with her captive, and start pacing again.

Cat Noir, meanwhile, was using his baton as a camera to zoom up to the Eiffel Tower. The He could see Queen Ghost sitting on a throne made of bones-_ When had she gotten that?- _with Alya tied to a pole nearby. Zombies guarded their prisoner while ghosts flew around Tower, flickering between visible and invisible. Alya squirmed around, trying her best to break loose, but it was useless.

Sighing, he put his baton away and turned to Ladybug. "What's the plan, bugaboo?"

Ladybug shook her head. "I don't have one. We can't give our miraculous to her, but we also can't let something bad happen to Al-that blogger girl."

"So what do we do?"

Ladybug frowned. Alya, she knew, was being used as leverage. Queen Ghost seemed to have absolute confidence that they would hand over their miraculous in exchange for Alya's safety.

_That gives us an advantage, _she realized.

Her partner was still looking at her, waiting for an answer.

Ladybug smirked. "I think I have a plan."

• • •

"Ten minutes left. It won't be long before Ladybug and Cat Noir show up, and you get your miraculouses, Hawk Moth."

_"Excellent plan, Queen Ghost." _

"Why, thank you." Queen Ghost giggled. "Those heroes won't hesitate when their friend Alya's life is on the line. And then, finally, you will win and I will take over Paris!"

"Are you having _another _creepy telepathic with Hawk Moth? Haven't you guys bragged about how you're going to 'win' enough?" The said friend huffed. "Seriously, don't you villains have anything else to do?"

Queen Ghost turned to her as the butterfly outline faded from her face. Growling in anyonance, she said, "And don't you have anything other to do than annoying us? We have a plan, and it's going to work."

"Ladybug and Cat Noir are going to defeat you. What makes you so sure that you'll be different from all the other akumatized villains?"

Queen Ghost's eyes narrowed. "You _do _realize that I could order my zombies to throw you off the Eiffel Tower? I wouldn't talk too much."

Alya rolled her eyes. "Please. I've read enough comic books to know that you won't kill me, because you still need me for leverage. You'll only throw me off or turn me into a zombie if Ladybug and Cat Noir refuse to hand over their miraculous."

Queen Ghost sputtered, apparently not knowing what to say. Finally, she turned to one of her zombies and ordered: "Get me a gag! This Alya girl is too annoying." The zombie produced a white cloth (from where, Alya had no idea) and proceeded to gag her with it.

Alya just rolled her eyes again. _It's going to be a long day, _she thought.

• • •

_Later_

"Times up, Alya!" Queen Ghost cackled. "It's 6:02, and Ladybug and Cat Noir never-"

"Sorry we're late to the party." Ladybug smirked. Next to her, baton in hand, was Cat Noir.

"So, ready to hand over your miraculous?" Queen Ghost asked. "It would be _such_ a shame if my zombies dropped her off the Eiffel Tower... accidentally, of course."

Ladybug locked eyes with Alya. She was gagged, but her eyes spoke for her: _Don't worry about me. Kick their butts and deakumatize her! _But she didn't want to risk her best friend's life.

Ladybug sighed. "You win, Queen Ghost." Holding back a smile, she raised her hands to her ears.

Exactly like they had planned, Cat Noir leaped forward, hand outstretched, and, before anyone could react, yelled, "Cataclysm!" making Alya's bonds crumble to dust.

"Zombies, attack them!" Queen Ghost shrieked. She herself raised her wand and pointed it at Cat Noir.

But before she could shoot, Cat Noir jumped off the Eiffel Tower, carrying Alya. Ladybug saw him set her down on the sidewalk, with Alya recording it all on her Ladyblog. The two superheroes had agreed that Cat Noir would go recharge after saving Alya, then rejoin the fight.

She turned her attention to the zombies and the villain in front of her. Queen Ghost was staring in shock at the direction that Cat Noir and Alya had gone.

"You ruined my plan!" She complained. "I was _going _to collect your miraculous for Hawk Moth, then backstab you and turn you, Cat Noir, and that Alya girl into a zombie, but you just _had _to ruin it all!"

Queen Ghost frowned and turned to her zombies. "Well? Get her miraculous!"

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**You guys have every right to be dissatisfied with this chapter. I'm not too happy with it because I feel like the characters are OOC (Out Of Character) but I decided to just post it as it is. **

**I _was _going to close the poll, but the 2 choices are tied, so I'll just keep it up until next Thursday. **

**Thanks for reading! Please review, vote in the poll (on my profile), or do neither. Or both review and vote. Both is pretty good. **


	6. Chapter 6: Zombies and More Zombies

**Thank you firestorm100 for following! **

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All the zombies surged forward, weapons and all. The ghosts had weapons too, and Ladybug soon found out that despite being impossible to touch, the ghosts were still able to weild swords.

Ladybug swung her yo-yo, tying half a dozen zombies together. Using both hands, she pulled them back, then used the force to pull them forward again, knocking about ten zombies off the edge. She repeated the process a few times, then released the zombies from her yo-yo, leaving them sprawled on the ground and groaning.

Ladybug used her yo-yo to knock the swords out of some of the advancing enemies' hands, but they still charged forward, determined to grab her miraculous.

She felt lucky that Queen Ghost wasn't firing at her with her wand, too. The villian was sitting back in her throne, letting her army do all the dirty work for her. In one hand was her wand, but it was relaxed. Queen Ghost was in no hurry to turn Ladybug into a zombie.

_Wait a minute...__The wand is what turned the civilians into zombies and summoned the ghosts. If I break it, the zombies and ghosts might disappear. And if I'm really lucky, the akuma will be in there too._

Ladybug threw her yo-yo, tying it around the wand. Queen Ghost yelped in surprise, then started pulling the wand towards her, trying to free it from the yo-yo. Ladybug manipulated the yo-yo so that it squeezed the wand, but the yo-yo just slipped off instead of breaking it.

Queen Ghost laughed. "My wand is indestructible! You'll never break it with your silly toy."

Meanwhile, the army had been advancing, and now they were almost upon Ladybug. The heroine deflected a sword with her yo-yo and took a step backward. Pressing her back against a beam, she spun her yo-yo in front of her, making a shield. One ghost hit the shield with its sword, and sparks flew. The rest stayed close but did not attempt to attack her.

After almost a full minute, her arm began to get tired. She could keep this up only for so much time. But if she let her guard down for a second, then the zombies and ghosts would attack her. Even if she _could _manage to continue this, Queen Ghost might get impatient and turn her into a zombie.

The zombies fanned out in front of her, swords ready. Queen Ghost smirked at Ladybug and twirled her wand, as if already imagining what she would look like as a servant to the queen.

Ladybug looked at the city below, hoping for help. _Where are you, Cat Noir? _

• • •

"How do you plan to defeat this villain?"

"Look, I'd love to answer your questions bu-"

"Will you call for backup?"

Cat Noir sighed. "I'm really sorry Alya, But I have to go-"

"Help Ladybug?" The blogger guessed. "Okay, but can I get an interview later?"

_Beep beep. _His ring flashed. He glanced nervously at it, then turned his attention back to Alya. "Uh, maybe?" He took a few steps backward.

"And can you get Ladybug too? It would be _awesome _if I could get the two superheroes of Paris on my blog!"

Cat Noir's ring beeped again. "I'll ask her. But I _really _got to get going."

Alya nodded. "Of course. Thanks for saving me!" She switched her camera off.

"Anytime." _Beep-beep. _He took one more step backward, then turned and bolted to the nearest alley.

Cat Noir sighed in relief, and his ring beeped one last time before releasing a wave of green magic over him, dropping his transformation. Plagg spiraled out of the ring and into Adrien's hands.

"Cheese," the kwami groaned.

Adrien chuckled. "Don't worry, Plagg. I think I have some of your stinky camembert in here.." He dug around in one of his shirt pockets, but there was nothing there. He searched his other pockets, but they were empty.

"Oh no," Adrien muttered.

"What's wrong?"

Adrien held his breath. "I'm all out of cheese."

Plagg's wails echoed throughout the alley.

* * *

**The poll is _still _tied. I'll keep it up until somebody decides to vote and break the tie. Remember, all you have to do is go to my profile and the poll will be there. **

**Thanks for reading this chapter! See you guys next Thursday! **


	7. Chapter 7: Suspense, But Not Really!

**Chapter names are decreasing in quality, so they'll only get worse as time goes on. Prepare for cringe, 'cause I have no creativity left for chapter names. **

**Thank you MizoreShirayukiFan and AgresteBug for favoriting! And thank you supernatural32 for reviewing! Your review brightened my day! And I can't wait to write the reveal!**

**Thank you to those who voted in the poll! **

* * *

"The nearest cheese store is just ten minutes away." Adrien told Plagg.

Plagg groaned. "Will they have camembert?"

"Yes, Plagg. Just be patient." Adrien walked to a corner, then turned right. After a left, then another right, they arrived at the small cheese store. After ordering a month worth's of camembert and leaving the confused cashier, Adrien handed Plagg a whole wheel of the stinky cheese.

"Camembert!" The little kwami swallowed the wheel whole.

"Ready to transform?" Adrien asked, running to the nearest alley and making sure no one else was there.

"Only if you give me extra cheese afterward."

Adrien sighed. "Fine. Plagg, claws out!"

• • •

After Cat Noir left her, Alya started running back to the Eiffel Tower. A little kidnapping wasn't going to hold her back! As long as she kept a safe distance, but still close enough to get the scoop, everything would be fine.

Alya was glad Cat Noir had set her not too far from the Eiffel Tower. She didn't want to arrive at the battle only to find it over.

She arrived at the base of the Eiffel Tower, where a few people were pointing up at Cat Noir, who was climbing up the side of the Eiffel Tower. Alya turned her camera on and focused it on him.

"Here we are, at the base of the Eiffel Tower, where Queen Ghost is battling Ladybug!" Alya narrated "As you can see, Cat Noir is climbing the Eiffel Tower, ready to join the fight."

She turned the camera off and started climbing the stairs to the top as fast as she could. One foot in front of the other.

Breathing heavily, she arrived at the top, where Queen Ghost was sitting on her throne. Ladybug was surrounded by the army of zombies and ghosts, all holding swords.

Hiding behind a beam, she pressed "Record" on her phone.

• • •

Still spinning her yo-yo, Ladybug tried to formulate a plan. Calling upon her Lucky Charm would leave her vulnerable, so that was out, even if she was left undefended for only a few seconds. Her yo-yo was the only thing separating her from the army.

Her arm was _really _tired now. She wanted to put it down, but she couldn't.

Queen Ghost snarled. "Keep spinning that yo-yo. It won't make a difference. Even superheroes have their limits. You won't last long. But I don't think I have the patience for that." She turned to her army. "Don't be afraid of her little yo-yo! Grab her miraculous!"

The zombies, no longer daunted by the shield that had been holding them back, attacked. A few grabbed her wrist, preventing her from using her weapon. Others wrestled her to the ground and held her back. Ladybug fought and struggled, but the sheer strength of a dozen or more zombies held her down.

Queen Ghost floated an inch off the ground towards her. "You thought you could get the best of me, didn't you? But I'm not like all the other akumatized villains. I don't make stupid mistakes. I don't fail to do what was asked of me. No, I don't do do any of that. Now, finally, I'll take your miraculous! Then, your silly cat will come up here, cocky and arrogant, not even realizing that the moment he shows himself, his miraculous will be taken! Finally, Hawk Moth will win, and I will rule Paris!" She reached towards Ladybug's earrings.

Suddenly, a silver baton swept all the zombies that were surrounding Ladybug off the edge. Queen Ghost was knocked to the ground, while the ghosts were unaffected because, well, they're _ghosts. _

Cat Noir grinned. "Missed me?"

* * *

**You guys probably guessed this already, but there was a tiebreaker in the poll! Thanks again to all six that voted. As you probably also guessed, me updating as soon as I finish a chapter won. 2 voted for once a week and 4 voted for as soon as possible. Anyway, chapters will be a bit shorter, but will come out more often! I'll close the poll right after I post this chapter. **

**Thanks for reading this chapter! And remember, reviews are help, and help is appreciated! **


	8. Chapter 8:Look What She Got Herself Into

**Hey guys! Sorry for the late chapter. Technically, I have no set update schedule, so there isn't really late or early updates, but I like to update at least once a week. But this time, it's been _way_ over a week, but that's partly because I had writer's block. "Partly" because I'm also just really lazy. I kinda just needed to get away for a bit to let my creativity recharge. Again, sorry. **

**Thank you ****Fritz97, sierranevadas84, Hkt29, Amaherst, Uselesswerewolf21,****delicaterock, and ****Daydream-wannabewriter for following! Thank you Spottedlittlebug for the review and thank you Hkt29 for the 7 reviews! **

**On to the story!**

* * *

"Looks like your little kitty wants to play, Ladybug!" Queen Ghost laughed. "Army, get him!"

She shot a purple beam at Cat Noir, but he deflected it with his baton. He dodged a sword and rolled out of the way of another beam of light from the wand.

The akumatized villain growled at him. "Hold still, you mangy alley cat!"

"Meowch! I'm hurt!" She shot a third beam at him, but he was now spinning his baton to create a shield. A zombie swiped at him with a sword, but the only result was sparks flying from where the sword and baton connected. The zombie stumbled back and fell after a kick from Cat Noir.

He raised his hands up in victory. "Woo! You don't want to mess with this cat, _Queenie." _

She scowled. "I will defeat you! Your miraculous will be mine!"

Cat Noir smirked at her. "And so they all say. At least I had a chance to distract you."

Queen Ghost's angry expression turned confused. "What?"

A yo-yo wrapped around her, tying her up. She started yelling for her army, but Ladybug's hand clamped over her moth. The akumatized villain wiggled around, but it was no use.

"Nice one, m'lady." Cat Noir grinned at her.

Queen Ghost wrestled free of Ladybug's grip, but was still tied up. "How!?" She shrieked. "My zombies _had _you in their grip!"

The heroine smirked. "You were so frantic to go after Cat Noir that you forgot to tell some of your zombies to keep me down. Cat Noir, her wand."

Queen Ghost whimpered as he pulled the wand from her grasp and used his Cataclysm. An akuma flew out of it. Purple magic swarmed over her, leaving a confused brown-haired girl with gray eyes. Ladybug released her from her yo-yo. Catching the akuma in her weapon, she went through the usual rituals of purifying it.

The scared girl looked up at them. "Ladybug? Cat Noir? How did I get here?"

Both heroes crouched down next to her. "You were akumatized. But it's okay now. Can I ask what your name is?" Ladybug spoke softly.

The girl looked up at them. "Quinn. I'm sorry that I've caused you trouble."

Cat Noir smiled gently at her. "It's not your fault. Hawk Moth is to blame." Before he could say more, his ring beeped. "Sorry, gotta go!" He sprang off the side and twirled his baton above him, acting like a helicopter blade.

Ladybug stood up. I'll get you home in a minute, but first, I need to do something." She threw her yo-yo up in the air and called, "Lucky Charm!" She didn't bother looking to see what it was before she the it up in the air again and yelled, "Miraculous Ladybug!" A swarm of ladybugs passed over the zombies, turning them back into civilians and depositing them safely onto the ground. The ghosts disappeared and any other damage cause by the akumatized victim was fixed.

"Come on, let's get you home." Ladybug carried Quinn in one hand and and used her yo-yo with the other.

• • •

Marinette, exhausted, fed Tikki a few cookies and relaxed on her bed. After a few minutes, her phone dinged with a notification from the Ladyblog. New footage from the latest akuma attack had just been posted. Alya, somehow, had managed to record the final fight. Ladybug hadn't even noticed her! She comes back to get footage after just having been rescued!? If she hadn't known how stubborn Alya was when it came to her blog, she would've tried to convince her best friend to stay away from the danger.

Marinette's phone started ringing. She picked it up and answered. "Hello?"

"Tomorrow, after school, at the park."

"Wait, what? Alya, you can't just say things like that with no context."

"Okay, fine. _You, _me, and the girls are going to the park after school tomorrow!"

"Why?"

"To _plan, _girl!"

"Plan for _what?" _

"Operation Adrienette! You know, the plan to get you ask Adrien out!"

"First of all, I never agreed to that. You know how I get around him! Second of all, _Adrienette!?" _

"Your ship name, girl! Just like LadyNoir is the ship name for Ladybug and Cat Noir!"

There was a _ship name_ for her and Cat Noir!? What was wrong with people!?

Marinette sighed. "Do I have to? I'm not ready!"

"Come on, girl! Trust me."

It was hopeless. Alya would be bugging (pun not intended) her forever if she didn't accept.

"Fine."

Alya let out a whoop. "Yes! Remember girl, tomorrow, after school, at the park. Bye!"

Marinette hung up and stared at the ceiling. _Look what I got myself into this time. _

* * *

**You may be asking why Queen Ghost's army didn't attack them while she was tied up. I could say they weren't sure what to do, but I'll tell you the truth: I was too lazy. I just wanted to get this chapter done so that we could move on to (what is for me) the exciting part. You say bad writing, I say genius. **

**I'll try to update faster, but no promises, especially since school's coming up in a week from tomorrow for me. **


	9. Chapter 9: Alya's Crazy

**Hey guys! I had a bit of a surge of creativity.**

**Thank you Lolly1o1 and DivineDemonDragon for following! Thank you .g.98 for favoriting and following! Thank you Hkt29 for reviewing! To .g.98, sorry about the cropped username. For some reason, this site won't let me write down your full username, whether I do it manually or by copying and pasting. I carefully write it down, then press _"Save" _and it just crops it. Again, sorry. I'm pretty sure you'll know who you are. **

**On to the story! **

* * *

The next day at school, Alya was showing her enthusiasm for her plan, "Operation Adrienette" by whispering things into Marinette's ear like:

"You ready girl?"

"After Adrienette becomes real, all I need is LadyNoir, and then my life will be complete!"

"What did you want to name your hamster again? You know, the one you and Adrien will have when you live together."

"Soon, Nino and I can go on double dates with you and Sunshine!"

As much as Marinette wanted to fantasize about her possible future with her crush, she also wanted to focus on her schoolwork for once. Unfortunately, it was a bit hard to concentrate when your best friend was practically exploding with excitement in the seat next to you.

As soon as the bell rang, Marinette barely had time to put her stuff into her bag before Alya took her and Rose's hand. Rose held on to Juleka, who held on to Alix while Mylene joined hands with Marinette. The girls ran all the way to the nearby park with Alya in the lead.

Letting go of their hands, Alya sat down on a nearby bench. "Yes! Time to talk about the plan!"

"Alya," Marinette began, "Maybe else should do this another-"

"No way, girl! Adrienette _will_ happen!"

"Can you actually _tell _us the plan instead of rambling about it?" Alix asked, annoyed. "I want to go to the skating rink before the day is over."

"Okay, okay. On Thursday, we're all going to meet in the courtyard before school. When I give the signal, the plan starts."

"Uh, what will the signal be?" Mylene asked. "I don't want to be confused."

"This is the signal: a simple thumbs up, so you guys better be paying attention." Alya did the named gesture. "After I give the signal, then the plan starts."

"Step one: Get Chloe out of the way. The girl is always near her 'Adriekins'. We need to get rid of her if Marinette is going to ask Adrien out." Alya explained. "Rose, Juleka, you two will be in charge of that. You're both constantly in the art room, so you can tell Chloe that you want to see her selfies that she wanted to add to the art room.* Hopetully, that should keep her away for a while."

"Step two: We all know Marinette gets _super _shy, nervous and clumsy around Adrien." All the girls laughed, Marinette included. "She might want to back out. So, Alix 'accidentally' crashes into Marinette on her skates, pushing her towards Adrien, who, being annoyingly nice, will heroically catch her before she hits the ground."

"Step three: As soon as Adrien catches her, Mylene starts playing romantic music from the speaker I'll let her borrow. Adrien, being the oblivious boy he is, won't realize that it has everything to do with the fact that he just catched Marinette."

"Step four: Marinette asks Adrien out. Don't worry girl, I have what you need to say written out on paper for you to memorize."

"Step five: After Sunshine accepts, we all celebrate with a trip to the bakery after school."

Rose squealed with delight and clasped her hands together on the side of her head and tilted it. "Ooh, how romantic! Adrienette is a great ship name!"

Mylene smiled. "I think it's a great plan."

Marinette frowned. "I don't know. I always mess up around Adrien, and every time I try to ask him out, something goes wrong."

"Don't worry, girl. Everything will turn out great!"

Marinette smiled, reassured. Alya was right. Everything would turn out fine. After all, what could go wrong?

* * *

**Oh nothing, Marinette. Nothing at all... no, not at all... *Cackles eviliy* **

**...I'm not sure I spelled that right.**

***Episode: Reverser, Season 2**


	10. Chapter 10: Stinky CHEESE?

**Thank you ****Nhealy for favoriting! Thank you Pawpatrol4life for favoriting and following! Thank you Hkt29 for reviewing!**

**Also, time jump! It's Thursday in the story now! Yay!**

* * *

Marinette took a deep breath. She could do were all in the courtyard. Adrien was talking to Nino nearby. Everyone was in their positions. Nothing had gone wrong. She had her words memorized. Nothing _could_ go wrong.

Except, well, everything.

"You ready, girl?" Alya asked her, startling her out of her thoughts. Pushing down her quessiness, she managed a weak smile and gave her best friend a thumbs up.

Alya grinned and turned to the rest of the girls. She gave them a thumbs up.

Operation Adrienette was a go.

Rose squealed and walked over to Chloe and Sabrina, Juleka following close behind. "Chloe!" The pink-loving girl exclaimed. "We want to see your selfies! You know, the ones everyone else didn't appreciate when you tried to display them in the art room!"

Juleka mumbled agreement.

Chloe flipped her ponytail over her shoulder. "Of _course _you want to see them. They are _way _better then whatever the other weirdos created."

Rose nodded. "I'm sure they were fabulous, Chloe!"

Juleka grumbled agreement.

Sabrina turned to Chloe. "Do you want me to get them, Chloe?"

"Oh, please, Chloe, let us see them!"

Juleka uttered agreement.

Chloe hesitated only for a second before giving in. "Fine, losers. Go get the selfies, Sabrina."

As soon as she came back Chloe snatched the collage out of her hands and starting pointing out the different selfies. "Here I am in front of the Eiffel Tower. And here, I'm posing with Ladybug. Her smile could use some work, though. Ooh, and here..."

Soon, Chloe was occupied and Rose was poring over the pictures, with Juleka murmuring agreement with whatever Rose said. Step one was complete.

Alya smiled at Alix, who started skating around the courtyard. Marinette squeaked, not entirely ready for what was next. Alya was right. She _did _want to back out of this. But there was no turning back now.

Alix held out her arms to the her sides, as if to balance herself. "Woah!" She pretended to lose control of her skates. Secretly, though, she was snickering at the chaos she was about to cause. But she kept up the act. "Oh, no! I'm losing balance! Which is totally uncharacteristic of me!" With a big _Oof, _she crashed into Marinette, miraculously **(Pun totally intended) **gaining control afterwards and managing to right herself.

Marinette however, fell...

...straight into the arms of Adrien Agrest.

Marinette crashed into his chest, and was met with something quite unfamiliar... It smelled like... was it... could it possibly be... **this is just stalling what I'm pretty sure is obvious to everyone at this point...**_stinky cheese!?_

* * *

**Oh yes... this is all part of my plan... MWAHAHAHA! **


	11. Chapter 11: Ooh, Yay, Sleep Loss!

**School starts ****_very _****soon for me. Updates will probably be much slower. **

**Thank you Pawpatrol4life and Blondie for reviewing!**

* * *

_Does Adrien have a weird stinky cheese fetish? _

_Wait...that sounds familiar. Where have I heard "stinky cheese"? _

Then Marinette's mind registered the fact that she had just crashed into Adrien Agreste.

_Adrien Agreste,** the love of her life. **_

Turning beet red, she looked up at said boy, managing to squeak: "S-sorry! I'm clumsy! Didn't mean to!"

Adrien smiled at her. "It's okay, Marinette."

She awkwardly stood up and brushed herself off, forgetting about the words she was supposed to say after Adrien catched her, all because of the stinky cheese she had smelled.

Marinette walked back to the girls. Rose and Juleka had just come back from distracting Chloe, the former excited to see what Marinette had said to Adrien, as she had not had the chance when dealing with Chloe.

"So! How did it go? Tell me everything!"

Alya turned to look at Rose. "All that happened was Marinette crashing into Adrien, like we planned, but she _didn't _ask him about the movie."

"Sorry! I just forgot!" Marinette said, not saying a word about the cheese smell. She didn't want to embarrass Adrien.

Alya gave her a reassuring smile. "It's okay, girl. Maybe we can try another time."

The bell rang, and the girls all went to class.

• • •

All throughout school, Marinette couldn't stop thinking about the stinky cheese she had smelled. Cheese wasn't exactly in the strict model diet she knew Adrien had to eat. Maybe he just really liked it and ate it when his father couldn't see. But that didn't seem right. He didn't didobey his father often. She had never seen him actually eating cheese, and Alya nor Nino had ever mentioned it before. Marinette mulled over possibilities, hardly paying attention in class at all.

• • •

Now back at home, Marinette asked Tikki, "What do you think?"

Tikki shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe he just really likes it."

Was she imagining it, or did her kwami seem kinda nervous? Marinette shook her head and pushed the thought aside. "I don't know. He's never mentioned it before. I don't think we have ever seen him eating it."

"He might be embarrassed."

Marinette frowned. "I guess. But when and where have I heard 'stinky cheese'?"

Tikki shifted around. "Don't overthink it, Marinette. It might not be that big of a deal."

She sighed. "Maybe you're right."

• • •

Marinette couldn't sleep. She was _still _thinking about the whole cheese thing. She should have brushed it off. Everybody had their weird quirks, even Adrien. But it stuck out to her. Something about it just didn't seem right. She was missing something; she could feel it.

But _what,_ she didn't know.

And where _had _she heard "stinky cheese"?

Then it clicked. A conversation she had with Tikki a few days ago. After an akuma attack, she had been complaining about all of Cat Noir's puns. Her kwami had commented that he enjoyed it like his kwami, Plagg, enjoyed eating stinky cheese.

But it had nothing to do with Adrien. The only similarities between Adrien and Cat Noir were their blond hair and green eyes.

And they both had stinky cheese on them.

And she had never seen the two at the same place at the same time.

_Wait... could Adrien be..._

Marinette shook the thought out of her head. It was impossible. The chances of it being him were microscopic.

_It's not him. _Marinette told her brain firmly. _Lots of boys in Paris have blond hair and green eyes. And, for all I know, the miraculous changes his eye color. It's not him. Now, let's go to sleep and forget all this. _

Easier said then done.

By three in the morning, Marintte had assured herself that it couldn't _possibly _be him, and that it was all a coincidence. And, finally, she was able to sleep.

But not as much as she would have liked. She was late to school the next morning, and spent the first few hours half-asleep.

* * *

**If only she knew what was coming next. **

**MWAHAHAHA! **

**Again, updates will be a _lot _slower. School starts tomorrow for me. **


	12. Chapter 12: And I Oop

**Oh, this was _way_ too much fun to write. **

**Thank you ChubbyUnicornMama, ****c250358, DarkLittleWolf, and Livy98 for following! Thank you Hkt29**, **ChubbyUnicornMama, and Pawpatrol4life for reviewing! Thank you frances.a for favoriting! Sorry about the cropped username. For some reason, this site won't let me write down your full username, whether I do it manually or by copying and pasting.**** Hope this doesn't become a regular thing.**

* * *

Adrien Agreste _loved_ puns.

Who didn't?

Unfortunately, his father didn't appreciate them as much as he did. He'd learned that the hard way. He was to supposed to act like a perfect model son, and puns could ruin the image.

At least, that was his father's logic.

But as Cat Noir, he didn't have to be Adrien Agreste. That's why used puns so much. But he didn't have to do it _just _when he was his alter-ego. An occasional pun now and then couldn't hurt, right?

So when he saw his friend, Marinette, half-asleep in class, he thought he might try to cheer her up.

Marinette snapped her head up and squeaked when he twisted around in his seat to look at her. Ignoring that, he said in a bright, cheery, voice, "Hey, Marinette. Isn't it just a _purrfect _morning?"

Alya tried her best to contain her laughter (and failing terribly) while Nino facepalmed and groaned, _"Dude. _Why?"

Continuing, Adrien said, "I'm _feline _great today. How about you, Marinette?"

She was staring at him, aghast and eyes wide. She didn't blink. She didn't move.

Had he done something to offend her? "Uh, Marinette, are you okay?" _And more importantly, why is your eye twitching? _

She stood up, still staring at him. Then, in a blur of movement, she grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the classroom. Ignoring Alya and Nino's cry of confusion and _Where are you going?, _Marinette ran to wherever her destination was, him struggling to keep up.

"Uh, where are we going?" Adrien asked nervously.

She ignored him.

Finally, after a few minutes, she stopped, poked her head inside a classroom, and after making sure it was empty, pulled him inside.

Slamming the door closed and locking it, she wheeled on him, eyes blazing, all signs of exhaustion gone, and threw her hands up in the air.

"What _**was **_that!?"

Adrien gulped. "A-a p-p-pun." The look she was giving him reminded him of when Ladybug got mad at him for being reckless during a akuma battle or taking a hit for her.

Pushing the thought aside, he asked, "Are you mad at me?"

Marinette laughed hysterically. _"Mad!? _I'm _**furious! **_I lost a _lot _of sleep last night! And it wasn't because I was designing or doing homework. No! It was because of _you, _Agreste!" She pointed an accusatory finger at him. "I was thinking _way _too much. And just when I assured myself that it _wasn't _you, it _isn't _you, it couldn't _possibly _be you, you come waltzing in and _pun! _Puns, of all things!"

Adrien tried to smile. "What's wrong with puns?" He had a suspicion on where this was going, and he didn't like it.

_"Everything! _I thought that I was going to have a _peaceful _evening today, but no! I'll probably stay up even _later _just thinking about today! I was fine. I had told myself it wasn't you. I was great! Maybe a nap after school, then I'd be _fantastic! _But you, Agreste, _ruined _it all! You and your _stupid_ puns and _stupid_ flirting and _stupid_ blond hair and _stupid_ green eyes!"

"What are you _talking _about?" She couldn't possibly know, could she?

"You, Adrien Agreste, you, model boy, you, oblivious idiot, you, stupid kitty, are _**CAT NOIR!" **_

Adrien flinched. Was it too late to act confused?

It was worth a shot.

_"What? _I'm not Cat Noir!"

Marinette scowled. "Don't play dumb with me, Agreste! It's _so _obvious, I'm surprised I didn't see it before! You _have to be more careful! _People aren't supposed to know your identity! What if I get akumatized? Or under the control of one of the villains? You and your friends and family will be in _danger! _That's why Ladybug was always so strict about the identities thing! Kitty, don't you see? This changes _everything!" _

Breathing hard, she crossed her arms and sat down in the front row of the classroom.

Silence.

They stayed like that for a few minutes. Then Adrien gathered up the bravery to ask a question that was bugging him.

"Are you disappointed?"

Marinette looked up, stunned, as if she'd been slapped across the face. _"No! _Why would you _think_ that!?"

Adrien's voice was low, his eyes focused on the floor, her rant sinking in. "You called me an idiot. Stupid. Oblivious."

Marinette gasped, her hands flying up to her mouth. "I'm sorry, Adrien! I-"

The bell rang, cutting her off.

Adrien sighed. "We better get to class."

He walked out of the classroom, leaving Marinette standing there alone and regretting what she had said to her friend.

* * *

**Oops. This came out with a lot more sad feelings then I originaly planned for. I had planned for zero, but I guess Marinette was feeling mad at Adrien. Oh, well. **

**This only came out so quick because I was thinking a lot about this chapter and how it could go. There were a lot of ways this could've turned out, but this is the way I chose. That might be why it came out faster than I expected: I had an idea just waiting to be released.**

**Update: I fixed a few mistakes I noticed in this chapter. If anybody notices any more, please tell me.**


	13. Chapter 13: (Not) Internally Screaming

**Oops. I haven't updated in a while. Sorry.**

**Thank you ****SilverStarWing, ****Bookworm183, ****Jahaha27, ****rockmace, AnnaRooma and ****SakuraKoi**** for following! Thank you ****IJustWantToFavorite, Pandamonium1868, Edith Mendez, and Jawlien for following and favoriting! Thank you ****Pawpatrol4life, Hkt29, SilverStarWing, ChubbyUnicornMama, ****RockSunner (twice! Yay!), and finally, Pandamonium1868 for reviewing. Thank you guys so much! I really appreciate it! A lot!**

**On to the story! **

* * *

"Where have you two _been!?" _Alya asked as soon as they entered the classroom.

"Not important." Adrien and Marinette said at the same time. They slid into their seats and stared straight ahead.

"Girl," Alya whispered as Ms Bustier entered the room, "what were you guys _doing?" _

"It's nothing, Alya." Marinette responded, avoiding Alya's gaze.

"It is _clearly _not just 'nothing'!"

"We were just... talking. That's all."

"But-"

_"Forget it, _Alya!" Marinette snapped. "I said it _wasn't important." _

Alya pulled away, hurt. "Fine. I'm just trying to help."

_Great. _She had ruined a friendship with not only with Adrien, but Alya too.

• • •

Marinette groaned and collapsed on her bed.

"Maybe I should take a nap. Yeah, I should relax and-"

"Uhh..." If kwamis had lips, Tikki would have bitten hers. "You have patrol with Cat Noir in an hour."

And with that, everything completely sunk in.

"Cat Noir is _Adrien! _Adrien is _Cat Noir!" _

And then it sunk in even more.

"I've rejected my _crush _for my _crush!" _

Tikki sighed. She regretted mentioning patrol. Now the girl was hyperventilating.

_Thousands of years of wisdom, and you do **this. **_

And she had thought the past ladybug miraculous holder's love triangles and love squares had been bad.

Now she had to deal with _this. _

"Adrien Agreste _flirted _with me! And PUNNED!"

Marinette screamed into her pillow. "What have I **_done!?"_**

* * *

**Yup, this **_very _**short chapter is just about Marinette freaking out. I'm sorry that I don't have as much time to update anymore. Okay, well, I _do, _but hey, there are **_**so **_**many fics to be read! How could I pass up those opportunities?**

**Please give suggestions, criticisms, tips, etc.! I have no idea what I'm doing!**


	14. Chapter 14: Patrol! (Yay?)

_**I AM SO, SO SORRY! I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN OVER A MONTH!**_

**On another note, _THANK _****YOU GUYS**_** SO**__** MUCH!**_ **I _really _appreciate all the views, follows, favorites, and reviews! I hope you really are enjoying this fanfic!**

**Thank you ****10DaMaGe, oOAngelwithaBrokenHaloOo, and MasterofImagination for favoriting! Thank you ****WendyDarlingofCamelot, lady wolvie, and rin145 for following! Thank you Missygirl1, Sagittarius no Liz, and The Brucest Writer for favoriting and following! Thank you ****SilverStarWing, Pawpatrol4life, Guest, Pandamonium1868, and Hkt29 for reviewing!**

**Also, patrol time! No reveal, though.** **Sorry**.

* * *

Ladybug waited anxiously on the Eiffel Tower, pacing and wondering what she was going to say to Cat Noir. He was a bit later than she was accustomed to, which was... strange. Then again, she _had _yelled at him for being an idiot. That would probably cause him to act a bit weird...

_But Adr- I mean, Cat Noir, doesn't know that. _She thought. _Unless he knows my identity. No, that's not possible. Right? I haven't done anything to jeopardize it. He could be having difficulty getting away from his family. Hopefully. But he hasn't had any trouble before... _

The thud of footsteps that announced his arrival startled Ladybug out of her thoughts. She looked up to see Cat Noir, almost looking like his typical self.

_Almost._

There was no visible difference, but it was obvious that he wasn't his usual, happy self.

Taking a deep breath, she decided to act as if nothing was wrong. If he wanted to tell her, than he would.

"Good evening, Cat Noir! Are you ready to start patrol?" Ladybug asked brightly, a fake smile plastered across her face. Did she sound too unnatural? She hoped not. Wouldn't be good to make him suspicious.

Cat Noir's false attitude shattered.

"Ladybug, I'm sorry!" He cried. "It was just a pun or two, really! I don't know why, but that m-made her realize that I-I..."

"Made who realize what?" Ladybug did her best to looked surprised. But there was no need; Cat Noir wouldn't look her in the face.

"She figured out my identity! I'm not sure why, I mean, it was only a few puns, but she did! Then she yelled at me and called me an idiot... I'm so sorry, I know nobody should know, and that if she ever gets akumatized, Hawkmoth will know too! I won't let it happen, again, I promise!"

After Ladybug asked him to recount how it happened, without names and locations, mind you, the poor boy started rambling.

"...And then we just walked back to where our friends were, and said nothing! But I'm sure she hates me now, and that's horrible, because she's one of my best friends and- oh no! I just realized! Her best friend is obsessed with finding out our identities! If she tells her..."

Trying to not freak out over the fact that _Adrien Agreste _had just called her one of his _best friends, _ she said, "Just make sure you talk to her soon, Cat Noir, to make sure she doesn't blab. And I think we should cancel patrol. You should rest and get some sleep."

Cat Noir nodded. "I'll talk to her tomorrow, don't worry, Ladybug!" He took out his baton, said good night, and was soon gone.

Ladybug sighed. It had a been a long day, and she was ready to make up her sleep. She swung her yo-yo, tied it around a building, and swung off.

* * *

**Again, sorry for the late update. And sorry for the chapter that is, I'm sad to say, a bit short. **


	15. Chapter 15: Oh, Yay, Hugs!

**Wow, I'm getting even worse at updating. At least this chapter is a bit longer than the rest?**

**Thank you weldingman0315, fvcr91 and Tmysterio for following! Thank you QueenNova78 and MelAria for favoriting! Thank you Vgn Golley, Risa-Chan22 for following and favoriting! Thank you Hkt29, ChubbyUnicornMama, and for reviewing!**

* * *

Alya eyed Marinette and Adrien. She had tried her best to wheedle the information out of the former, but her best friend still refused to talk about what had happened between her and Adrien the other day. Nino was having the same luck with Adrien.

It was all so _frustrating. _

Now, observing them in class, she could see even more reasons to be both worried and curious.

For one, Marinette wasn't gazing at the back of Adrien's head like she usually did. Her eyes _were _on him, yes, but she seemed sad, worried, hopeful, and overall depressed.

As for Adrien, he wasn't laser-focused on his work, which was quite unusual for him. In fact, he kept staring off into space and occasionally stealing a glance at Marinette when she wasn't looking.

The bell finally rang, signaling the end of class. Alya huffed as Marinette ran out, probably just to avoid more questions.

"I have some designs to work on!" She called to Alya, though it was obviously a lie.

Adrien followed suit, saying something about his schedule being packed, and Nino just shook his head at Alya as if to say, _Yeah, they're crazy. As usual._

• • •

Evening came, and Marinette was getting more nervous by the second. Adrien I'm-Cat-Noir Agreste _still _hadn't talked to her, and she was beginning to doubt his promise to Ladybug. He had made no attempt to talk to her after school, but then again, he was busy. Always busy. But, still...

"Where is he?" Marinette mumbled to herself. _It would just be so much better if we could get this over with, _she added silently as she left her room and went up to her balcony.

She sat down, different thoughts occupying her mind. Mainly, _If he isn't going to talk to me now, he won't do it today. It's already getting late._

Marinette shifted her position on her chair to make herself more comfortable. She looked at the Paris skyline and noticed something jumping from rooftop to rooftop.

Suddenly she wanted to take back her wish that they could "get it over with."

Cat Noir landed on a rooftop nearby. She waited, but he seemed hesitant and didn't come any closer.

She waited some more.

He still didn't move.

Waiting.

No movement.

Waiting.

Still no other movement.

No longer able to hold to hold it in, Marinette called out, "I can see you, Cat Noir."

Adrien-_no, Cat Noir _thought Marinette, resting the urge to laugh maniacally at it all - landed on her balcony, looking a bit sheepish.

"Hey." He said, avoiding looking her in the eye.

"Hey." Marinette responded, staring determinedly at her pot of flowers nearby.

For a minute, no one spoke.

Then, they both said, "I'm sorry!"

"Please don't hate me!" They both pleaded.

Then, confused, the two teenagers asked each other (at the same time, of course, I love this gag), "Why would I hate you?"

In spite of herself, Marinette laughed. Cat Noir stared at her for a moment, then started chuckling too.

Feeling a bit better, she asked him, "Do you want to come inside? So, you know, no one overhears?"

Cat Noir nodded, still smiling, and let Marinette lead him inside.

Noticing the superhero glancing nervously at the trapdoor leading downstairs as he entered, she said, "Don't worry. My parents are asleep, and _nothing _can wake them up as soon as they get a chance to sleep." And it was hard to hear conversations from inside her room, which was very useful when talking to Tikki. Of course, she didn't tell Cat Noir that. It was bad enough she knew his identity; who knows what could happen if he found at hers?

Pushing the thought out of her mind, she "casually" looked around the room for any sign of Tikki. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, Marinette nodded with satisfaction. If she couldn't see her, Cat Noir couldn't, and she wasn't worried about where she was. She knew she could call on her kwami if need be, and sweet, wonderful, loyal Tikki would be there.

Marinette sat down and saw Cat Noir looking around the room. Thank goodness she had had the foresight to take down her pictures, posters, and magazines with Adrien on the cover. And her computer screen. All of it was safely hidden.

Cat Noir looked back at her, and her confidence crumbled. Nope, nope, nope, she couldn't do this, it was too much.

But she _had _to.

Taking a deep breath, she said, "I'm sorry"

Cat Noir opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, she continued on, as if trying to get it all out of her system.

"I was an idiot, I know, I wasn't thinking straight, I'm just worried about what might happen, but I should never have been so mean, I'm sorry, I'm a bad friend, I would understand if you hated me and" she squeezed her eyes shut "I'm just so, so sorry. I never meant to hurt you or yell at you and I hate myself so, so much right now."

And she did. Cat Noir could see that. He wanted to comfort his friend, but, again, before he could, Marinette started up again, as if sensing he wanted to speak.

"It was never right to scold you like that, and I truly am sorry. I don't deserve your friendship, or your lo-"

She stopped, knowing that if she let the word _love _slip out, then he might figure out that she was Ladybug. _Not Marinette, _she reminded herself bitterly, a bit surprised that the idea of Cat Noir not loving both sides of her was terrible to her. He certainly loved Ladybug.

She had always tried to play it off. Pretend she didn't know that the flirting was more than just that, flirting.

Pretend she didn't want to return it.

Pretend she was annoyed when in reality parts of her were squealing in happiness.

But she couldn't do that to Adrien. She couldn't do that to Cat Noir. It wasn't fair to either of them.

But now they were the same person.

Now she could allow herself to love both of them.

But she _couldn't. _

_Cat Noir only loves Ladybug, _Marinette told herself again, a bit more forcefully this time. _Ladybug, not Marinette. Now get your head out of the clouds and back into reality. _

Shaking herself out of her thoughts, continued on to Cat Noir. "I'm just tired of not being able to talk to you at school like we used to." _Ha. I was more of a blabbering mess. _"But I understand if you never want to talk to me again. I just don't want things to be so _tense."_

Cat Noir gaped at her for a moment. Then, wordlessly, he enveloped her in a hug.


	16. Chapter 16: Super Glamorous, Apparently

**Thanks for the follows and favorites!**

**Sorry about the super late update. I didn't get a lot of time to write this and the first few times I did I got writer's block. Convenient, huh? Anyway, I was cured. This chapter is a bit longer than the others because I wanted to make up for all the time that has passed between the last chapter and this one. **

* * *

Adrien should've felt ecstatic.

Turns out Marinette, who he admired- _Not like, not in that way, even though she is pretty and nice and- _Adrien told himself to shut it.

Anyway, turns out Marinette didn't hate him.

But something kept bothering him.

Marinette's words when she confronted him about his identity kept coming back to him. Adrien was no longer offended by her words; last night, when he came over to her house as Cat Noir, they had straightened everything out. Turns out, Marinette _had _been mad, but just because she was worried about him. Furious, even, but in a super-protective-friend way. Everything was fine now, though, and Adrien was pretty sure his friendship with her had improved.

But he was still thinking about Marinette's angry rant. Something about it was _off. _He just wasn't sure exactly what. What had she said?

_"Kitty, don't you see?" _

That wasn't right. She had never called him that before. But that day, she had done it. Several times, come to think of it.

Wait a minute... didn't _Ladybug- _

"Adrien?"

Adrien snapped his head up. Miss Bustier was looking at him. "I was asking if you knew the answer."

Adrien mentally kicked himself. Class was _not _the place to get lost in his thoughts. "Could you please repeat the question?" He asked his teacher.

She smiled in amusement and repeated the question.

Adrien barely managed to fumble out an answer. Satisfied, Miss Bustier turned back to the board.

He sighed in relief, then looked at Nino, who was looking at him.

"What were you thinking about?" Nino asked.

Adrien smiled nervously. "Nothing important," he lied.

Nino arched an eyebrow but didn't press him. Adrien felt relieved. Bad enough he had let Marinette figure it out. Now, she was in more danger than before. He couldn't let someone else find out. He turned his head back to the front of the classroom, determined to focus.

Just as he started actually paying attention, the alarms went off.

• • •

Akumas were really, _really _inconvenient.

Seriously, he couldn't even get a proper education with Hawkmoth attacking so frequently. It was either when he was at school or afterschool when he was trying to do homework or participating in one of his many extracurricular activities.

And don't forget the occasional late night akumas who seemed to be determined to deprive of Adrien of sleep!

Glancing at his phone, he raised his hand as Miss Bustier half-heartedly assured everyone that everything was fine. She, too, seemed tired of so many akumas.

His classmates weren't even _scared _at this point. In fact, Alix and Kim were placing bets on how stupid this one was going to be and how long it was going to take Cat Noir and Ladybug to defeat it. Max was rattling off statistics while the rest watched in amusement.

"Yes, Adrien?" Miss Bustier turned her attention to him.

Tearing his eyes from the Alix/Kim/Max situation, he responded, "I have to use the bathroom."

"I do too, Miss Bustier!" Marinette called.

Miss Bustier nods her approval, and they both walked out the door.

• • •

As they're walking toward the bathrooms (the girl's bathrooms and the boy's are located near each other) Marinette turns to him and says, "I can't believe you would say that all the time just to get out of the classroom and I never even _noticed."_

Their dynamic has really improved. It's become more like how it is when they're Ladybug and Cat Noir. Marinette's crush is still there, but something about having him visit as Cat Noir and talking with him to smooth things over prevents her from stuttering and blushing and being the mess she used to be. Now, she can tease him to her heart's content. Like she's doing right now.

Muffled laughter comes from somewhere around Adrien's shirt. "Yeah, the kid isn't exactly subtle."

"Plagg!" Adrien scowled and looked down at his shirt. Then he gave Marinette an apologetic look. "Sorry. Plagg is my kwami. He gives me my powers and transforms me into Cat Noir."

Plagg emerges from Adrien's shirt, still snickering. There's nobody around since everybody else in their class, so there's no danger of being overheard or seen.

Marinette shapes her features to look surprised. "Wow! He's small."

Plagg starts laughing even more. "Oh, that's funny. This whole thing is just _hilarious. _You look surprised!"

"Of course! I've never met you before! I'm Marinette!" Underneath the fake sweetness, she gives Plagg a subtle message: _Remember, buddy, Adrien doesn't know we met when Style Queen happened. He doesn't know I'm Ladybug. So stop being suspicious, for kwami's sake! _

Plagg is still grinning, but he manages to say, "Pleased to meet you," formally before collapsing into a fit of giggles. Then he retreated back into Adrien's shirt pocket.

Adrien just looks confused.

Marinette almost started laughing herself. The situation _is _pretty funny.

Adrien clears his throat. "I have to go help out there." He nods in the general direction of yells, the new villain ranting/monloguing, and car alarms blaring.

Marinette crosses her arms and glares at him, but not in actual anger. "You take care of yourself, okay? Don't do anything stupid or idiotic. Do _not _take a hit for Ladybug. I've got enough stress in my life without you sacrificing yourself."

There's no venom in her words, and Adrien just smirks at her in that annoyingly cute way that he does as Cat Noir, assuring her that he's not offended. "I'll try not to." His expression softens. "Stay out of the way, okay? Don't get hurt. Unlike me, you don't get a magical suit that protects you."

Another muffled laugh comes from Adrien's shirt pocket. Both ignore it.

Marinette smiled at Adrien. "I'll be careful."

Adrien goes into the bathroom. About a minute later, Cat Noir comes out. He salutes Marinette, then uses his baton to vault out of the school. She makes sure he's gone before going into the girl's bathroom.

After making sure nobody else is there, Marinette walks into a stall and opens her purse. Tikki flies out.

"One of those days, I'm going to _kill _Plagg," she mutters.

Marinette giggles before straightening. "We have to help Cat Noir. Tikki, spots on!"

• • •

At this point, Cat Noir was just annoyed more than anything.

The newest akumatized villain had the ability to make people and objects turn to pink dust and get sucked into her staff, but didn't even use it that much. She seemed to just be showing off for the news cameras, posing and blowing kisses in midair. Occasionally, she aimed a blast at a building or Cat Noir with her staff, but she didn't seem to be too focused on getting his miraculous. That was fine with him. Despite her powers, she was probably one of the least dangerous villains.

Unfortunately, Hawkmoth realized that too. The classic butterfly insignia appeared over her face.

"What do you mean, Hawkmoth?" she wailed. "Of course I'm concentrating on defeating the heroes!"

Ladybug lands beside Cat Noir. "What kind of costume is _that?" _She points to the gaudy, hot pink dress with the bright orange leggings that the akuma was wearing. Her hair is done in more than a dozen braids, each dyed a different bright color. Her footwear are a pair of black high heels with fake rhinestones.

Cat Noir just shrugs. Honestly, he kinda wishes that Hawkmoth was secretly, like, a world-renowned fashion designer or something. Then the costumes of the villains wouldn't be so bad.

The hideously dressed villain is still listening to Hawkmoth talk, apparently. He's never been sure exactly how it works.

Then, the akumatized villain shrieks. "Don't take my powers away! Ugh, you're so infuriating! ...Fine!"

The butterfly outline faded, and she turns her attention to Cat Noir and Ladybug. "I am-" she spins and poses dramatically- "Charmante!"

Ladybug rolls her eyes. "Seriously?"

Charmante frowns at her. "I will be so much more popular and glamorous than _you, _Ladybug!" She aims her staff at her and fires. Ladybug jumps out of the way while Chat Noir hits Charmante in the face with his baton. The supervillain seems more annoyed than hurt, however, and just growls at him before aiming her staff at him.

The rest of the battle continues on. Cat Noir would have been more worried if Charmante didn't pose every other minute. She seemed to be perfectly content to just be floating in midair. He suspected that she only would only chase them if need be.

He ducks behind a dumpster, only for it to be blown into pink sparkles. Charmante floated above, shaking her head. "Would you _hold still?! _I can't give your miraculous to Hawkmoth if you keep avoiding me and my staff."

Cat Noir fakes an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I'm not really _feline _like getting defeated by Hawkmoth today. Maybe later?" He ducks out of the way to avoid a blast from Charmante's staff.

She stops her foot, which looks a bit strange while floating. "No! It has to be today, because then he gets annoying and grumpy." She then grumbled mostly to herself, "Stupid Hawkmoth."

The butterfly symbol appears again. "Fine, I'm doing it, I'm doing it!" She rolls her eyes as the symbol disappears. She points her staff at Cat Noir and says, "It's over, you non-glamorous hero!"

He grinned at her. "Nah, I don't think so. I'm the cat's meow! Of course I'm glamorous! Also, it's not over."

She frowned. "Why not?" she asks like a whining little kid.

"You forgot about the super glamourous Ladybug!" Ladybug says, coming up from behind Charmante and tying her up with her yo-yo. She pulls on her yo-yo and Charmante comes crashing to the ground.

She growled. "You aren't glamorous! Nobody but me is!" She doesn't even protest when Ladybug takes her staff from her, instead still wailing that she is the most popular and glamorous person to ever exist.

Ladybug breaks the staff over her knee, releasing the dark purple akuma trapped inside. She goes through the usual purifying ritual and offers to take the now deakumatized girl home.

"Talk to you later at patrol?" She asks after Hawkmoth's victim is delivered back with her parents. Since neither of them used their special powers (Ladybug discovered that just throwing the yo-yo up into the air was good enough to do Miraculous Ladybug) they aren't going to transform back immediately, but she knows that they both have civilian obligations to get back to.

Cat Noir nods, and Ladybug swings away on her yo-yo. Usually, he'd be a lot more talkative during battles, but today his mind was on something else.

For some reason, during the fight with Charmante, all he could think about was that Ladybug's eyes seemed so familiar...

• • •

After dinner, Marinette lay on her bed, doodling some designs in her sketchbook. She was so immersed in her designs that she almost forgot about patrol. Thankfully, Tikki was there to remind her.

Marinette transformed, then slipped out of her room. Ladybug used her yo-yo to swing from rooftop to rooftop. Soon, she was at the Eiffel Tower, where Cat Noir was already waiting.

She landed next to him and sat down. "Hey. Did you talk to the girl who found out your identity?"

Cat Noir nodded, but he seemed... distracted. She wondered why. She hadn't done anything wrong, had she? Ladybug- well, Marinette- felt more at ease with Adrien than she had ever been before.

"So... she's not going to tell anybody, right?"

Her partner nodded again. "She won't. I trust her."

Ladybug sighed with fake relief. She had to keep up the act. Cat Noir _could not _find out that Marinette was Ladybug.

_But would it be so bad? _A little voice in her head wondered. _Wouldn't he be glad to know that one of his "best friends" is Ladybug? _

Nope, she couldn't afford to think that way. Ladybug forced the thoughts out of her mind.

Concentrating on what was in front of her, or rather next to her, she studied Cat Noir. His eyes were focused on the sinking sun. Only a silver of it was left. It would be dark soon.

She focused on it, too. It was nice, just sitting next to Cat Noir. They didn't have to say anything. She was comfortable with him just _being _there.

All too soon, the sun disappeared, which signaled the end of "patrol." To be fair, Ladybug suggested doing it to get to the scene quicker if there was an akuma, crime that needed to be stopped, or any disastrous event that could be prevented by the superhero duo. However, it had slowly turned into bonding time for the two of them. They didn't really do anything during patrol except talk. They didn't share anything too detailed, of course, for the sake of their identites, but just shared the events of the day in vague ways, asked for advice, and just talked with each other about anything, really. It allowed Ladybug to have some insight on what Cat Noir was like when he wasn't fighting an akuma with her. Sometimes, though, they didn't need to communicate. They simply just enjoyed the other's company, like now.

But that time was over now. They both had responsibilities to get back to in their civilian lives. She stood up, and was about to say goodbye to Cat Noir suddenly said, "Can I ask you something?" Ladybug nodded.

"When are we going to reveal our identities to each other?"

His question took her by surprise. He had asked her several times, even almost detransformed right in front of her once, but this time seemed... different. Not as pleading, more curious than anything else.

"It just seems unfair, I guess." he continued, still staring at the horizon. "She found out before you, and I always thought that you'd be the first to know." Cat Noir looked up at her. "So when? I'm not, like, trying to pressure you or something, but I just want to know when I get to see you without the mask on."

_What if he just found out right now? You could say that you already know. More specifically, you could say that you were the first to know, _a little voice in her suggested. _Wouldn't it be so much easier to just let him know? You could be happy with him._

Why did these thoughts keep popping up? She couldn't do that. Identities needed to be protected more than ever now. And even if he did find out, a romantic relationship wasn't guaranteed. He was in love with _Ladybug. _Not Marinette. If he found out, he would realize Marinette, who was Ladybug, wasn't as amazing as Cat Noir thought she was.

No, it was safer to just not think about that. Safer for her to stay hidden behind the mask. Safer for her if he didn't know.

"I- I don't really know when. Maybe after Hawkmoth is defeated."

"Oh," was his response. There were a few moments of silence before he asked, "What if she gets akumatized? Aren't secret identites worthless now anyways?"

"If you get akumatized and you know my identity, Hawkmoth would find out. If I get akumatized..." Ladybug trailed off. Her unspoken words hung in the air. _...then we might be doomed anyways. _

Ladybug cleared her throat a little awkwardly. "As for Marinette, there's always the possibility she won't get akumatized. Not everybody in Paris can get akumatized."

"Wait..." Cat Noir stared at her in shock. "How did you know Marinette was the one who figured out my identity?"

Too late, Ladybug realized her mistake. She giggled nervously. "Didn't you say her name? Yeah, I'm pretty sure you did. Uh, anyways, I have to go. See you tomorrow!" She took her yo-yo out and used it to escape from the Eiffel Tower.

"Phew," Marinette sighed once she was safely back in her room.

Tikki nodded and finished her cookie. "That was a close one!" she agreed.

"Do you think he'll find out?" Marinette asked, looking over at her kwami from her desk chair.

Tikki hesitated, then said, "I don't think so. He's a bit oblivious."

Marinette smiled. "Yeah, he is.." she replied dreamily.

Marinette changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. She was exhausted, both mentally and physically. After all, she had been stressed after the Adrien/Cat Noir situation, and she hadn't gotten much sleep lately. "Goodnight, Tikki!" she called.

"Goodnight!" Tikki responded.

Soon, Marinette was fast asleep.

• • •

Adrien lay awake in his bed. He should've been asleep a long time ago, but he couldn't help it. His mind was swirling with thoughts.

_How had Ladybug known Marinette was the one who found out? _For some reason, his thoughts strayed to what he had been thinking about earlier in class. _Why did Marinette call me "kitty?" Ladybug is the only one who does that._

_Probably because she knows I'm Cat Noir, _Adrien told himself. _That's the only explanation that makes sense._

After a while, his eyes grew heavy. He shifted into a position that was more comfortable and fell asleep.

In his dreams, images of Marinette and Ladybug blended together, leaving him confused. Which was which?

Maybe they were one in the same. He couldn't be sure. Blue eyes sparkled, but whose? They both looked so similar...

When he woke up in the morning, he couldn't remember what he had dreamed about.

* * *

**By the way, "Charmante" means "charming" in French.**

**...At least according to Google Translate. **

**If the first part of this chapter seems a bit like a crackfic, it's because I just wanted some humor. If it doesn't, it means I'm bad at writing humor.**

**This chapter was a bit longer to make up for the long absence, but the rest of the chapters are probably going to continue to be around 1000 words or so. **


	17. Chapter 17: No, Really?

**Sorry for not** **updating sooner. I started this chapter, then scrapped it and restarted it. **

* * *

It didn't make sense.

How had Ladybug known Marinette was the one who figured out his identity? He mulled over it from the time he got up to when he entered the classroom.

During class, his thoughts drifted and became, _Why did Marinette call me by the same pet name Ladybug used after she found out I was Cat Noir?_

For some reason, his subconsciousness kept nudging the two questions together, even though the latter had already been solved. It made sense that Marinette called him "kitty" because, well, _duh, _he was a cat. Cat Noir, to be specific.

So why did the two thoughts seem connected? No connection between the two existed other than that they both were related to his identity... but that was just a coincidence.

... Right?

Adrien sighed. Maybe he should list the facts, what he knows to try to figure it out.

_Okay. Ladybug calls me (as Cat Noir) "kitty." When Marinette finds out I'm Cat Noir, she calls me "kitty." _

_Weird. _

_Anyways, Marinette finds out my identity, and somehow Ladybug finds out that it was her who found out, when I'm 99.99% sure I didn't say her name. _

Adrien felt like he was missing a huge piece of the puzzle. But what was it?

_So, Ladybug and Marinette both call me "kitty,"_ he summarized. _Both Ladybug and Marinette know that Marinette knows who I am. _

Adrien's eyes widened as a new theory presented itself to him.

_No, no, that can't be right. _

_It's ridiculous. _

_Ludicrous._

_Absurd. _

_Impossible. _

_Way too impossible. _

Yet it made sense.

_But there's no way Marinette is La-_

"Uh, dude? Earth to Adrien? You coming?"

Adrien snapped his head up to look at Nino, who was arching an eyebrow at him. Behind him stood Alya and Marinette, who were both looking concerned.

Marinette was looking at him closely, as if trying to find out what he had been thinking about. She seemed more concerned than Alya and Nino, maybe because she knew he thought she was-

Nope, nope, nope. He was _not _following that train of thought again.

Adrien realized Nino was still waiting for his answer. "Uh...yeah!" He plastered that perfect-model smile on his face and stood up to collect his things.

• • •

Adrien paced back and forth in his room, muttering nonsense. Plagg wasn't sure what it was about- well, okay, he had an _idea _that he hoped was true, 'cause these kids had been dancing around each other for too long- but _whatever _it was, it was starting to get annoying.

"What are you worrying about _this _time?" Plagg asked.

Adrien stopped pacing and sighed. "I think I'm overthinking things."

"But what _things_ are you ovethinking?"

"I... I think I know who Ladybug is."

Plagg gasped dramatically, holding back a smirk. "_Really?! _Adrien, who do you think she is?"

Adrien hesitated, as if afraid sharing the idea would make Plagg laugh at him. Or maybe was afraid to think about it because Ladybug had been so strict about the identity thing. Plagg didn't know. Finally, however, Adrien said, "I think... I think Marinette is Ladybug."

* * *

**Sorry this is so short. My creativity has seemed to have dried up. **


End file.
